Cardinal Color
Cardinal is a pink color with hex code #8C055E. This page covers its meaning, all color values, harmonies, colors that go with cardinal, shades, tints, similar colors, CSS examples, FAQs, and WCAG contrast ratios.
Cardinal Color Values
What Does Cardinal Mean?
Cardinal belongs to the pink family of colors. Pinks are red with the volume turned down. Soft ones read as gentle and personal; hot ones shout happily. Beauty packaging owns the pastel end, youth brands own the neon end, and dusty millennial pink had its entire decade. Being on the dark side, Cardinal adds weight and depth. It suits text, shadows, and grounding elements more than wide-open backgrounds.
In the ISCC-NBS color naming system, Cardinal is classified as a red (nearest centroid: deep purplish red, #78184A). It is also known as Cardinal Pink.
Color Harmonies
Complementary
Analogous
Triadic
Colors That Go With Cardinal
Cardinal and #058A31 are complements, parked opposite each other on the wheel. Together they hit maximum contrast, so a rough 70/30 split keeps the pairing from shouting.
Analogous neighbors — #74058A and #8A051B, which sit beside cardinal on the wheel. Pairings like this feel calm and settled, which suits backgrounds and gradients.
For an energetic three-color palette, pair cardinal with triadic partners #5E8A05 and #055E8A. All three sit evenly spaced around the wheel, so the scheme stays lively without clashing.
Build and test these combinations in our Color Wheel Tool or check text readability with the Contrast Checker.
Tints and Shades
Tints (lighter)
Shades (darker)
Similar Colors
- Dark Magenta —
#960056(Delta E 8) - Flirt —
#A2006D(Delta E 9) - Velvet —
#750851(Delta E 9) - Reddish Purple —
#910951(Delta E 10) - Deep Magenta —
#A0025C(Delta E 10)
CSS Examples
.text { color: #8C055E; }
.background { background-color: #8C055E; }
.border { border: 2px solid #8C055E; }
.shadow { box-shadow: 0 4px 6px #8C055E40; }WCAG Contrast
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the hex code for cardinal?
Cardinal has the hex code #8C055E. In RGB notation it is rgb(140, 5, 94), in HSL it is hsl(320, 93%, 28%), and its OKLCH value is 0.425, 0.175, 348.6.
What does the color cardinal mean?
Pink-family colors like cardinal carry distinct psychological associations. Cardinal belongs to the pink family of colors. Pinks are red with the volume turned down. Soft ones read as gentle and personal; hot ones shout happily. Beauty packaging owns the pastel end, youth brands own the neon end, and dusty millennial pink had its entire decade. Being on the dark side, Cardinal adds weight and depth. It suits text, shadows, and grounding elements more than wide-open backgrounds.
What colors go with cardinal?
Cardinal has three easy routes: its complement #058A31 for punch, its neighbors #74058A and #8A051B for something calmer, or triadic partners #5E8A05 and #055E8A when you want energy.
Is cardinal a standard web color?
No — Cardinal is not a CSS keyword. Use its hex value #8C055E or any RGB/HSL equivalent in your stylesheets.
How do I make cardinal lighter or darker?
To lighten cardinal, add white to create tints; to darken it, add black to create shades. The tints and shades table above shows five computed steps of each, from #FDC4EA (lightest tint) to #190111 (darkest shade).
About Cardinal
Cardinal is classified as a Red in the ISCC-NBS color naming system, within the Pink hue family. It has alternative names including Cardinal Pink. The color is recognized by Resene, meodai.
Use our Color Converter to convert #8C055E to any other color format, or explore the Color Wheel to find harmonious color combinations.